The Gloved Hand Read online

  CHAPTER VI

  THE SCREAM IN THE NIGHT

  For some moments, I stood staring up into the darkness, half-expectingthat shadowy figure to reappear, descend the ladder, and rejoin me.Then I shook myself together. The fact that our plot was reallymoving, that Swain was in the enemy's country, so to speak, gave theaffair a finality which it had lacked before. It was too late now tohesitate or turn back; we must press forward. I felt as though, aftera long period of uncertainty, war had been declared and the advancedefinitely begun. So it was with a certain sense of relief that Iturned away, walked slowly back to the house, and sat down again uponthe porch to wait.

  Now waiting is seldom a pleasant or an easy thing, and I found it thatnight most unpleasant and uneasy. For, before long, doubts began tocrowd upon me--doubts of the wisdom of the course I had subscribed to.It would have been wiser, I told myself, if it had been I, and notSwain, who had gone to the rendezvous; wiser still, perhaps, to havesought an interview openly, and to have made sure of the facts beforeseeming to encourage what might easily prove to be a girl's more orless romantic illusions. A midnight interview savoured too much ofmelodrama to appeal to a middle-aged lawyer like myself, however greatits appeal might be to youthful lovers. At any rate, I would becertain that the need was very great before I consented to meddlefurther!

  Somewhat comforted by this resolution and by the thought that no realharm had as yet been done, I struck a match and looked at my watch. Itwas half-past eleven. Well, whatever the story was, Swain was hearingit now, and I should hear it before long. And then I caught the hum ofan approaching car, and was momentarily blinded by the glare ofacetylene lamps.

  "Hello, Lester," called Godfrey's voice, "I'll be back in a minute,"and he ran the car on toward the rear of the house.

  I stood up with a gasp of thankfulness. Here was someone to confide inand advise with. The stretch of lonely waiting was at an end; it hadbeen a trying evening!

  I think the warmth of my greeting surprised Godfrey, for he looked atme curiously.

  "Sit down, Godfrey," I said. "I've got something to tell you."

  "What, discoveries already?" he laughed, but he drew a chair close tomine and sat down. "Well, what are they?"

  I began at the beginning and related the day's adventures. He listenedwithout comment, but I could see how his interest grew.

  "So young Swain is over in those grounds now," he said thoughtfully,when I had finished.

  "Yes; he's been there three-quarters of an hour."

  "Why do you suppose Miss Vaughan named so late an hour?"

  "I don't know. Perhaps because she was afraid of being discoveredearlier than that--or perhaps merely because she's just a romanticgirl."

  Godfrey sat with his head bent in thought for a moment.

  "I have it!" he said. "At eleven-thirty every night her father and theadept go up to the roof, to remain there till midnight. That is theone time of the whole day when she is absolutely sure to be alone.Come along, Lester!"

  He was on his feet now, and his voice was quivering with excitement.

  "Where are you going?" I asked.

  "Up the ladder. It's nearly twelve. If the star falls as usual, we'llknow that everything is all right. If it doesn't ..."

  He did not finish, but hurried away among the trees. In a moment wewere at the ladder; in another moment we were high among the leaves,straining our eyes through the darkness.

  "I'm going to look at my watch," said Godfrey, in a low voice. "Leanback and screen me."

  I heard the flash of the match and saw a little glare of light againstthe nearest leaves. Then Godfrey's voice spoke again.

  "It's three minutes of twelve," he said.

  There was a tension in his voice which sent a shiver through me,though I understood but dimly what it was he feared. The stars wereshining brightly, and once I fancied that I saw the strange starappear among them; but when I closed my eyes for an instant and lookedagain, it was gone. Slow minute followed minute, and the hand withwhich I clutched the ladder began to tremble. The sight of thatmysterious light had shaken me the night before, but not half sodeeply as its absence shook me now. At last the suspense grewunendurable.

  "It must be long past midnight," I whispered.

  "It is," agreed Godfrey gravely; "we may as well go down."

  He paused an instant longer to stare out into the darkness, thendescended quickly. I followed, and found him waiting, a dark shadow.He put his hand on my arm, and stood a moment, as though inindecision. For myself, I felt as though an intolerable burden hadbeen laid upon my shoulders.

  "Well," I asked, at last, "what now?"

  "We must see if Swain has returned," he answered. "If he has, allright. If he hasn't, we'll have to go and look for him."

  "What is it you fear, Godfrey?" I demanded. "Do you think Swain's indanger?"

  "I don't know what I fear; but there's something wrong over there.This is the first night for a week that that light hasn't appeared."

  "Still," I pointed out, "that may have nothing to do with Swain."

  "No; but it's a coincidence that he should be in the grounds--and I'malways afraid of coincidences. Let us see if he is back," and heturned toward the house.

  But I held his arm.

  "If he's back," I said, "he'll have taken the ladders down from thewall."

  "That's true," and together we made our way forward among the trees.Then we reached the wall, and there was the dim white line of theladder leaning against it. Without a word, Godfrey mounted it, stoodan instant at the top, and then came down again.

  "The other ladder is still there," he said, and took off his cap andrubbed his head perplexedly. I could not see his face, but I couldguess how tense it was. I had been with him in many trying situations,but only once before had I seen him use that gesture!

  "It won't do to alarm the house," he said, at last. "Do you know wherehe was to meet Miss Vaughan?"

  "At an arbour in one corner of the grounds," I answered.

  "Then we'll start from there and take a quiet look for him. Wait herefor me a minute."

  He melted into the darkness, and I stood holding on to the ladder asthough in danger of falling, and staring at the top of the wall, whereI had last seen Swain. An hour and a half had passed since then....

  A touch on the arm brought me around with a start.

  "Here, put this pistol in your pocket," said Godfrey's voice, and Ifelt the weapon pressed into my hand. "And here's an electric torch.Do you feel the button?"

  "Yes," I said, and pressed it. A ray of light shot toward the wall,but I released the button instantly.

  "You'd better keep it in your hand," he added, "ready for action. Notelling what we'll run across. And now come ahead."

  He put his foot on the ladder, but I stopped him.

  "Look here, Godfrey," I said, "do you realise that what we're about todo is pretty serious? Swain might have a legal excuse, since thedaughter of the house invited him to a meeting; but if we go over thewall, we're trespassers pure and simple. Anybody who runs across us inthe darkness has the right to shoot us down without asking anyquestions--and we'd have no legal right to shoot back!"

  I could hear Godfrey chuckling, and I felt my cheeks redden.

  "You remind me of Tartarin," he said; "the adventurer-Tartarin urgingyou on, the lawyer-Tartarin holding you back. My advice is to shakethe lawyer, Lester. He's out of his element here to-night. But if he'stoo strong for you, why, stay here," and he started up the ladder.

  Burning with vexation, I started after him, but suddenly he stopped.

  "Listen!" he whispered.

  I heard something rattle against the other side of the wall; then adark figure appeared on the coping.

  I felt Godfrey press me back, and descended cautiously. A momentlater, something slid down the wall, and I knew that the person at thetop had lifted the other ladder over. Then the figure descended, andthen a distorted face stared into the circle of Godfrey's torch.

  For a brea
th, I did not recognise it; then I saw that it was Swain's.

  I shall never forget the shock it gave me, with its starting eyes andworking mouth and smear of blood across the forehead. Godfrey, I knew,was also startled, for the light flashed out for an instant, and thenflashed on again.

  "What is it, Swain?" I cried, and seized him by the arm; but he shookme off roughly.

  "Stand back!" he cried, hoarsely. "Who is it? What do you want?"

  "It's Lester," I said, and Godfrey flashed his torch into my face,then back to Swain's.

  "But you're not alone."

  "No; this is Mr. Godfrey."

  "Mr. Godfrey?"

  "Whose house we're staying at," I explained.

  "Ah!" said Swain, and put one hand to his head and leaned heavilyagainst the ladder.

  "I think we'd better go to the house," Godfrey suggested, soothingly."We all need a bracer. Then we can talk. Don't you think so, Mr.Swain?"

  Swain nodded vacantly, but I could see that he had not understood.His face was still working and he seemed to be in pain.

  "I want to wash," he said, thickly. "I cut my wrist on that damnedglass, and I'm blood all over, and my head's wrong, somehow." Hisvoice trailed off into an unintelligible mumble, but he held one handup into the circle of light, and I saw that his cuff was soaked withblood and his hand streaked with it.

  "Come along, then," said Godfrey peremptorily. "You're right--that cutmust be attended to," and he started toward the house.

  "Wait!" Swain called after him, with unexpected vigour. "We must takedown the ladders. We mustn't leave them here."

  "Why not?"

  "If they're found, they'll suspect--they'll know ..." He stopped,stammering, and again his voice trailed away into a mumble, as thoughbeyond his control.

  Godfrey looked at him for a moment, and I could guess at the surpriseand suspicion in his eyes. I myself was ill at ease, for there wassomething in Swain's face--a sort of vacant horror and dumbshrinking--that filled me with a vague repulsion. And then to see hisjaw working, as he tried to form articulate words and could not, senta shiver over my scalp.

  "Very well," Godfrey agreed, at last. "We'll take the ladders, sinceyou think it so important. You take that one, Lester, and I'll takethis."

  I stooped to raise the ladder to my shoulder, when suddenly, cuttingthe darkness like a knife, came a scream so piercing, so vibrant withfear, that I stood there crouching, every muscle rigid. Again thescream came, more poignant, more terrible, wrung from a woman's throatby the last extremity of horror; and then a silence sickening andawful. What was happening in that silence?

  I stood erect, gaping, suffocated, rising as from a long submersion.Godfrey's finger had slipped from the button of his torch, and we werein darkness; but suddenly a dim figure hurled itself past us, up theladder.

  With a low cry, Godfrey snatched at it, but his hand clutched only theempty air. The next instant, the figure poised itself on the coping ofthe wall and then plunged forward out of sight. I heard the crash ofbreaking branches, a scramble, a patter of feet, and all was still.

  "It's Swain!" said Godfrey, hoarsely; "and that's a twelve-foot drop!Why, the man's mad! Hand me that ladder, Lester!" he added, for hewas already at the top of the wall.

  I lifted it, as I had done once before that night, and saw Godfreyslide it over the wall.

  "Come on!" he said. "We must save him if we can!" and he, too,disappeared.

  The next instant, I was scrambling desperately after him. Thelawyer-Tartarin had vanished!